Humans have been cooking over fire since Homo erectus first pulled a fish out of a lake in Israel 780,000 years ago* so why do contestants on MasterChef have so much trouble with the hibachi?
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As any MasterChef-ionado (I just made that term up) will know, the hibachi features regularly on the bingo card, alongside someone mentioning their nonna, a failed panna cotta or Poh kneeling in front of her oven.
Once the coals are lit in the traditional Japanese grill, you know there's going to be smoke, drama and maybe something tasty.
The hibachi was first introduced to MasterChef in season two in 2010 by the eventual winner Adam Liaw.
"I remember asking for one and having to explain to the producers what it was so they could go and buy one," he tweeted in 2020, not realising what a legacy he was creating.
I fancy myself on the barbecue. I can grill with the best of them. One of my earliest cooking memories was constructing a makeshift barbecue out of some bricks and old wire racks in our backyard and treating the neighbourhood kids to a sausage sizzle. Delish, but not exactly MasterChef-y enough.
Time to up my game and try an actual hibachi.
Luckily chef John Leverink, from Beltana Farm, is a patient man, and has a hibachi he's happy to let me use.
The hibachi works overtime in his restaurant kitchen. On the menu there's an ox tongue skewer with lilli pilli and horseradish and a beetroot skewer with horseradish and myrtle.
"All of our steaks go over the hibachi and we finish the saltbush chicken on the hibachi too," he says.
The day I'm in the kitchen he has some fillets of bonito to test out and a couple of meaty prawns, as he's working on new dishes for the change of seasons.
He's already heating up the charcoal when I get there. He recommends using binchotan charcoal which is not cheap, but long-lasting and chemical free.
"Cooking on the hibachi is all about heat control," he says.
"If it's too cold everything is going to stick, if it's too hot everything is going to burn."
Leverink says there's a few differences between a regular barbecue and the hibachi.
"See that beautiful, beautiful smoke," he says, as the chicken thighs I've marinated in some of my favourite Hawker-style BBQ Blend spices from Gewurzhaus, cook away.
"It's imparting a really subtle smoke flavour, as opposed to wood smoke, and the flare-ups from the dripping fat just enhance the flavour."
He's impressed by my choice of protein.
"The Japanese have been doing it with yakitori for centuries, so chicken is a great choice."
The cooking process isn't that hard, it's about continually turning the skewers; thinking about where the hotspots might be and if you're cooking something delicate like the thin fillets of bonito, keeping them away from the flames; letting things cook for long enough to create those delicious caramelly edges.
One good tip I picked up is to dry the fish skin so it doesn't stick - you could leave it uncovered in the fridge for a bit, but Leverink saves time by giving it a quick blast with a little blowtorch.
He uses a hibachi at home occasionally, I could see myself doing the same.
There's something quite satisfying about cooking over flames, the occasional flare-up reminds us of our ancient origins.
Maybe you wouldn't pull the hibachi out if you had a hungry family to feed, but if you wanted to get in touch with your primitive side, I'd give it a go.
I really don't see why the MasterChef guys can't get it right. But then I don't have Andy Allen yelling out "30 seconds to go!" while I'm doing it.
Try it at home
Okunoto Japanese konro grill. $359.
Crafted using high-quality diatom mud from Japan's Okunoto peninsula, this version is known for its excellent insulation properties. 31cm, ideal for cooking for two to four people.
With dual charcoal chambers to cook at two different heat levels simultaneously as well as dual air vents, this tabletop grill is perfect for cooking a variety of barbecue foods all at once.
The Cube, by Everdure by Heston Blurmenthal. $229.
With an integrated food-grade storage tray, bamboo preparation board, and a porcelain enamel firebox, this provides a hassle-free setup, cooking, and cleaning experience. And it's by Heston.
Tabo compact grill. $729.
Designed for small, intimate meals at home, the Compact makes charcoal grilling even more accessible. The mesh grill can be removed to allow for cooking skewers on the yakitori rail.
And if you're looking for charcoal, John Leverink recommends binchotan from chefsarmoury.com
- Exactly when humans first began cooking any type of food is unknown, and there's no consensus on when ancient hominins first developed the ability to start fires and cook. Researchers at the Tel Aviv University's Steinhardt Museum of Natural History discovered the fossilised remains of cooked fish in 2022. Until then, the earliest hard evidence of the use of fire to cook was by Neanderthals and Homo sapiens, who cooked starchy roots in what's now South Africa about 170,000 years ago.
- Stay tuned for our next challenge - cooking from the mystery box.
Karen Hardy
I've covered a few things here at The Canberra Times over the years, from sport to education. But now I get to write about the fun stuff - where to eat, what to do, places to go, people to see. Let me know about your favourite things. Email: karen.hardy@canberratimes.com.au
I've covered a few things here at The Canberra Times over the years, from sport to education. But now I get to write about the fun stuff - where to eat, what to do, places to go, people to see. Let me know about your favourite things. Email: karen.hardy@canberratimes.com.au
